Details are sketchy at this point, but friends of Russ O’Hara have reported that the former Los Angeles-area DJ has passed away.
Best known for his work at the original KRLA (now KWVE, 1110 AM) from 1969-72, 1981-82, and again 1992-93, O’Hara’s smooth voice was also found on a variety of stations including KGFJ (now KYPA, 1230 AM), KKDJ (now KIIS-FM, 102.7), KEZY (now KGBN, 1190 AM), and even KROQ (106.7 FM).
Born Russell Nealeigh in Glendale, O’Hara worked at stations from Santa Maria to San Bernardino to Palm Desert; outside of California he was heard in Tuscon. You can hear some fun airchecks by heading to YouTube or MixCloud, among others, and searching under his name.
No details as to the cause of death are known at this time.
Christmas in October
The Christmas decorations have already arrived at various home retailers, and stores like Costco have been selling them for weeks already. Which must mean it’s time for holiday tunes on the radio.
Holiday tunes? On the radio? In October? “Surely you can’t be serious,” I hear you say. But I am serious. And don’t call me Shirley.
Saul Levine launched the holiday tunes Oct. 1 on the digital HD3 stream of KKGO (105.1 FM), which you can hear if you have an HD radio. Supposedly it is also available online, but after searching for apps, websites, and other online sources, I was unable to find it. I have asked Levine for information; I’ll let you know what he says.
Birthday bash
“What a party!” began the email from Brad Chambers, the man behind MartiniInTheMorning.com, an adult standards online radio station. “Celebrating 19 years of MITM on the Internet and someone’s 70th birthday.”
The birthday referenced is Chambers, who had friends perform some of his favorite music at the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood on Monday, Sept. 29. Missed it? You’re in luck: the entire evening was video-taped and is being presented as a pay-per-view on-demand file for $10 via the MITM website.
Gamut followup
Before I left Arlington, Virginia, where I was visiting my son, Sean, I was able to tune in to the Gamut’s all-digital AM frequency at 820 AM. WSHE/Frederick, Maryland, was the first and is the only remaining all-digital AM station in the world, broadcasting with a special version of the AM HD Radio standard, called MA3. It has been all-digital since 2018.
Since an all-digital signal cannot be received using a regular analog radio, I was curious what it was like to listen. So I persuaded my son’s girlfriend Ella to let me try the radio in her car, which happens to be HD. My rental car radio was not.
Unfortunately due to time constraints I was unable to take the car for a drive to see how well the reception held. But the tuning process was straightforward, if not just slightly strange due to the lack of immediacy. While faster to decode the digital signal than the the hybrid system currently used by all other HD stations, AM or FM, the lack of an analog component meant that it took a second or so to start hearing music.
The result was worth the wait, however — the sound was every bit as good as FM, perhaps even better, though it was hard to discern in such a small space in a limited time.
Is all-digital the future of AM? Some think so. I am not convinced, unless the changeover is mandated by the FCC similar to what was done with digital television. I doubt current stations would want to lose the ability to be heard on millions of analog-only radios, even if the long-term success potential of AM was increased.
Regardless, I asked the program director of The Gamut, Dave Kolesar, who also works as the station group Senior Broadcast Engineer, how they do it. How many listeners to they get, and how do they make money with no commercials?
“In any given month, our audience can range from 10,000-50,000,” Kolesar told me. “Frederick is a small submarket of DC, so it may be reasonable to guess that 1/5 – 1/3 or our listening is from the all-digital AM. It does have a following, as the online stream and the 820 digital AM are the only ways to hear The Gamut in stereo.
“As far as revenue, we have been approached about selling ads, but have not done so,” he continued. “What you are hearing is truly a labor of love.”
I commend the ownership and management for allowing it to exist. It’s definitely a luxury most likely due to the success of other stations also owned by Hubbard Broadcasting.
Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist covering radio in Southern California. Email rwagoner@socalradiowaves.com